Exactech Inc has reached agreement to expand its distribution of orthopaedic products to Korea. Under the five-year agreement, Arthrex Korea Inc in Seoul becomes Exactech's exclusive Korean distributor. Exactech now has distribution agreements in 20 countries outside the United States.
Exactech CEO Dr. Bill Petty said, "Arthrex Korea specializes in arthroscopy, joint and soft tissue and trauma products and will prove to be an exceptionally strong distributor for Exactech. They have long-standing relationships with sports medicine surgeons, who generally are also active in total knee replacement. The company has sales distributors in Seoul, Kyunggi, Daejeon, Ulsan, Busan and Daeku. Choong-Hwan Kim, president and founder of Arthrex Korea, who is also founder of the Korean Arthroscopy Association, enjoys a high degree of credibility in the Korean orthopaedic community."
The Korean hip and knee reconstruction orthopaedic market is estimated by Arthrex Korea at approximately $64 million a year. The company is preparing for the regulatory submission to the KFDA. It is expected that it could take as long as a year to obtain regulatory approval in Korea to import Exactech's ISO9001 products.
Arthrex Korea is owned by Choong-Hwan Kim, who established the company following ten years as a sales manager for Johnson & Johnson. The company has sales of approximately $2.5 million per year and has been number one in international sales among distributors of Arthrex arthroscopic and trauma products for almost ten years. Arthrex Korea also has strategic distribution partnerships with Telos of Germany, France-Bloc and Sgariato Labs of the U.S.A.